Jenson Button is looking forward to the challenge of learning a new track at next Sunday's United States Grand Prix.

Formula 1 returns to the USA for the first time since 2007, and it will be the first Grand Prix at the Circuit of the Americas just outside Austin, Texas.

“Visiting a new circuit is always an interesting challenge," said Vodafone McLaren Mercedes driver Button, from Frome.

"You approach it in a very different way from a track you’ve visited before – Thursday’s trackwalk and those first laps are all about exploration and understanding as you gather information from lots of different sources in a bid to build up a complete picture of the track and what’s required to get the best from it.

“On paper, the circuit looks to have a little bit of everything – the plan-view certainly looks familiar; you can see elements of the Maggotts/Becketts complex from Silverstone; there’s a reverse of Istanbul Park’s Turn Eight, too; and I can even see a bit of the Hockenheim infield, too.

“Whether those elements will blend together to make a satisfying whole remains to be seen, but there are a couple of long straights into tight corners, too, which should at least open up the possibility of overtaking.

“I think we’re in for a fantastic weekend – I really cannot wait to get out to Austin and see the city, the people and the track. I think it’s going to be brilliant.”